Amari Welcome to the 1-1-1 New Era: How to Step Into Your Most Authentic Self This Universal Year One
If you’ve been feeling like you’re standing at the edge of something significant, trust that instinct. You are.
January 11, 2026 wasn’t just another Sunday on the calendar. It marked a powerful 1-1-11 energy portal that’s setting the stage for what numerology calls a Universal Year One—the beginning of an entirely new nine-year cycle. And if you’ve been through the wringer in 2025 (hello, transformative Snake Year energy), you already know this shift has been building for a while.
But here’s what makes this moment different from every other “New Year, New You” message you’ve been bombarded with: 2026 isn’t about becoming someone new. It’s about unbecoming everything that wasn’t you in the first place.
Let that sink in for a moment.
The Truth About Transformation That No One Talks About
We’ve been conditioned to believe that growth means addition—that we need to add more skills, more discipline, more productivity, more something to finally become worthy of the life we want.
But what if the most powerful transformation happens through subtraction?
Think about Michelangelo’s approach to sculpture. He didn’t add marble to create David. He chipped away everything that wasn’t David until the masterpiece was revealed. That’s what this Universal Year One is inviting you to do—not to pile on more “shoulds” and restrictive resolutions, but to gently remove the layers that have been covering up your true essence.
The conditioning that told you to play small. The limiting beliefs you inherited from family patterns. The version of yourself you created to keep others comfortable. The masks you wore to fit in, be accepted, or avoid rejection.
All of it. Let it fall away.
Understanding the 1-1-11 Portal and Universal Year One Energy
If you’re newer to numerology, let me break this down in a way that feels grounded and practical.
In numerology, we calculate a Universal Year by adding up the digits of the current year: 2+0+2+6 = 10. 1+0 =1— hence its called a universal year 1. The beginning of a new 9-year cycle. The last “year 1” cycle was in 2017.
January 11, 2026 gave us a 1-1-11 amplifier—triple ones, which in numerology represent new beginnings, fresh starts, independence, and initiation. This date acted as a cosmic anchor point, a threshold moment that opened the doorway for this year’s transformative potential.
When we look at the broader cycle, 2026 is the first year of a new nine-year numerological cycle (following the completion energy of 2025). Year One in any cycle represents a reset:
- New beginnings and fresh starts
- Independence and self-discovery
- Leadership and pioneering energy
- Initiation and planting seeds
- Individuality and authentic self-expression
This isn’t about hustling harder or forcing change. It’s about aligning with the natural rhythm of transformation that’s already trying to move through you.
What 2025’s Snake Year Taught Us About Shedding Skin
If 2025 felt intense, uncomfortable, or like you were being squeezed through a cosmic pressure cooker—you weren’t imagining it.
The Snake Year in Chinese astrology is all about transformation, rebirth, and shedding what no longer serves. Snakes don’t shed their skin because they want to—they do it because they’ve outgrown it. The old skin becomes restrictive of the growth their body requires, and uncomfortable. They also shed to dislodge any parasites that may have attached to them and deplete their vitality.
Sound familiar?
Maybe you experienced:
- Relationships that naturally completed or transformed
- Career shifts that felt both terrifying and inevitable
- Old belief systems that suddenly felt too restrictive for who you’re growth
- Physical, emotional, or spiritual detox that left you raw but renewed
- An increasing inability to tolerate inauthenticity—in yourself or others
That was the shedding. And if you’re reading this, you made it through. The old skin has been released, and now you’re standing in this tender, new space, ready to grow into what’s next.
The Difference Between Resolutions and Revelations
Here’s where most New Year energy goes wrong: we make resolutions from a place of “not enough.”
I’m not thin enough, so I’ll diet. I’m not successful enough, so I’ll hustle. I’m not spiritual enough, so I’ll meditate for an hour every day.
These resolutions are built on a foundation of lack, and no matter how much willpower you throw at them, they rarely stick because they’re not aligned with your truth. They’re aligned with someone else’s idea of who you should be.
What if, instead, you made space for revelations?
Revelations come from a place of remembering who you actually are beneath all the conditioning. They whisper, “This is true for me. This lights me up. This is my alignment.”
In this Universal Year One, your work isn’t to create a new identity—it’s to uncover the one that’s been waiting beneath the surface all along.
Practical Ways to Embrace the Unbecoming
Spiritual growth is beautiful, but it also needs to be grounded in real life. Here are some practical, nurturing ways to work with this unbecoming energy:
1. Audit Your “Shoulds”
Take out a journal and make two columns. In the first, write down all the things you think you should do, be, or want. In the second column, honestly assess: “Is this actually true for me, or is this someone else’s voice?”
This simple practice can be revolutionary. You might discover that half of what you’re striving for doesn’t even belong to you.
2. Create Space for the New
You can’t plant new seeds in soil that’s already overcrowded. Look at your life—your schedule, your commitments, your relationships, your physical space—and ask: “What needs to be cleared to make room for what wants to emerge?”
This might mean:
- Saying no to obligations that drain you
- Unfollowing social media accounts that make you feel less-than
- Clearing clutter from your home
- Setting boundaries with people who don’t honor your growth
3. Plant One Seed at a Time
Universal Year One energy is about initiation, not completion. You don’t need to have it all figured out. You just need to take the first step.
What’s one seed you can plant today? Not a massive overhaul—just one small, aligned action that feels true to who you’re becoming.
Maybe it’s:
- Sending that email you’ve been avoiding
- Signing up for the class that’s been calling you
- Having the conversation that needs to happen
- Starting the creative project that’s been occupying your thoughts for months or even years
- Simply sitting in stillness and asking, “What do I actually want?”
4. Practice Compassionate Unlearning
Unbecoming can feel uncomfortable because we’re releasing identities we’ve worn for years, sometimes decades. Be gentle with yourself in this process.
You’re not broken for having adapted in ways that helped you survive. You’re not “behind” for just now realizing certain patterns weren’t serving you. You’re right on time, doing the courageous work of coming home to yourself.
The Coulds vs. The Shoulds: A New Framework for Growth
One of the most liberating shifts you can make this year is moving from “should” thinking to “could” thinking.
“Should” thinking says:
- I should meditate every day
- I should have my life together by now
- I should be further along
- I should want what everyone else wants
“Could” thinking says:
- I could explore meditation and see what resonates
- I could honor where I am and trust my timing
- I could celebrate how far I’ve come
- I could get curious about what I actually desire
Do you feel the difference? “Should” closes doors and creates pressure. “Could” opens possibilities and creates space.
This Universal Year One is inviting you to explore what could be possible when you stop forcing yourself into molds that were never meant for you.
Your Most Important Question This Year
As you stand at this threshold of new beginnings, there’s one question that can guide you through the entire year ahead:
“Does this align with who I’m becoming, or who I used to be?”
Use this as your compass for decisions big and small. When an opportunity arises, when someone asks something of you, when you’re about to say yes to something—pause and ask this question.
Your authentic path will light up. The old patterns will feel constrictive, like that snake skin that’s been shed.
Trust what you feel.
The Seeds You Plant Today
Here’s what I know about Year One energy: the seeds you plant now will grow throughout this entire nine-year cycle.
That’s not pressure—it’s permission. Permission to start small, to experiment, to get it “wrong,” to course-correct as you go.
You don’t need to have the whole garden planned out. You just need to put one seed in the soil and tend to it with love.
What wants to grow through you this year?
Maybe it’s:
- A business or creative project that’s been whispering to you
- A relationship with yourself that’s rooted in compassion instead of criticism
- A spiritual practice that feels authentic rather than performative
- A career pivot that honors your evolution
- A way of being in the world that feels more aligned with your truth
Whatever it is, it doesn’t need to be perfect. It just needs to be planted.
An Invitation, Not a Demand
As we move through this powerful 1-1-1 energy and into the full expression of Universal Year One, I want to offer you an invitation rather than a demand:
What if you gave yourself permission to unbecome?
Permission to release the exhausting performance of being someone you’re not.
Permission to disappoint people who were only comfortable with the smaller version of you.
Permission to outgrow spaces, beliefs, and identities that served you once but don’t anymore.
Permission to take up space as your authentic self, whatever that looks like for you.
This is your year of first steps. Not giant leaps. Not perfect execution. Just one aligned action after another, each one bringing you closer to the truth of who you’ve always been beneath everything you thought you had to be.
The Snake Year cleansing is complete. The old skin has been shed.
Now, what will you grow into?
Let’s Continue This Journey Together
The unbecoming isn’t always easy, but you don’t have to walk this path alone. If this message resonated with you, I invite you to:
Share this post with someone who needs to hear that they don’t need to become someone new—they just need to remember who they’ve always been.
Drop a comment below: What’s the one thing you’re most excited to manifest in this new Universal Year One cycle? I’d love to hear what seeds you’re planting.
And if you’re ready to ditch the “shoulds” and embrace the “coulds,” let’s talk about the first aligned step you’re taking today. Your transformation matters, and your authentic voice is needed in this world.
Welcome to the 1-1-1 New Era. Welcome home to yourself.
Ready for more guidance on your spiritual journey? Subscribe to receive weekly insights on transformation, healing, and awakening delivered to your inbox. [Subscribe here →]
